Watch our baby grow!

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Okay, so maybe not the first Thanksgiving, but our first Thanksgiving in our new home and our first time hosting Thanksgiving. What we thought was going to be a quiet night for just the three of us ended up as us hosting a dinner party for nine! Yes, we did know about all of the guests before I did the grocery shopping, and yes, they were all invited. :) Before I get into details, we want to apologize to all the family members we just didn't get to call on Thanksgiving. Please know that you were in our thoughts and prayers. We were just incredibly busy with our hosting responsibilities! While I admit I was a little nervous about our first venture into hosting a large group for a holiday, it was really great. One of the things we've looked forward to most about our new home is the ability to entertain; we simply didn't have the space to really do that in Redmond. We really enjoyed our evening with friends and family, and while washing dishes that night we were already planning when we could do it again! One of the big highlights of the evening for me was getting to use my grandmother's china for the first time. I have to share a photo of my table despite the fact that the photo itself didn't turn out very well; I know I didn't do anything exceptional, but I was excited about how nice the table actually looked since I've never hosted a somewhat formal dinner before. It was such a treat setting the table and thinking of G-Ma (my nickname for my grandmother) watching over me while I did it. We'll end this post with a photo of Eli's playroom...this is what it looked like after I started cleaning up and thought to grab the camera. Here's the kicker - just two little munchkins made this whole mess! Needless to say, Eli and his friend Evelyne had a fun evening!

Finally, a little gratitude...We are so very thankful for our family, immediate and extended, both those who are still with us and those who've gone home to be with the Lord, and certainly for our new little one on the way. We are so grateful for our new home, our health, our friends, our church, Ryan's job, and all of the innumerable, immeasurable blessings we enjoy. We truly have such a blessed life - thank you Lord!

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Unfortunately I have no photo to accompany this post because it's about what Eli said, instead of what Eli did. I've actually been meaning to do this post for awhile, but Eli added another adorable anecdote to the story today, so here you go!

At every nap time and bedtime we sing to Eli. The songs are different depending on the day and who's putting him to bed. I often sing hymns to him, and end with "Jesus Loves Me." We've been singing "Jesus Loves Me" to him since he was a baby, so he's more than a little familiar with the song. One morning I brought Eli into our bed to cuddle for awhile until I was ready to get up (he woke up way too early that day!). While we were lying down, Eli started to sing..."Jesus loves me...Jesus, Jesus, Jesus...for the Bible...Bible, Bible, Bible...He is strong." Unfotunately I interrupted him with my giggles, and the song ended there, but it was so darn cute!!

Later that week at bedtime I was singing "As the Deer." Eli often asks the name of the song I'm singing and what it's about, so it didn't phase me when he interrupted my song to ask what it was called. I answered, "As the Deer" and continued to sing. He then interrupted with, "what is that song about?" I answered, "it's about God," and continued to sing. Finally, he interrupted and said, "that song is about deer!" I couldn't help but laugh and say, "well, yes it is!"

We had a similar conversation this afternoon when I sang "Come Thou Fount." Eli: "What's that song called?" Mama: "Come Thou Fount." Eli: "What's that song about?" Mama: "It's about God." Eli: "What isthat song about??" Mama: "It's about God." Eli: "That song is about fountains!" Again, followed by laughter from both of us! I did take the opportunity to explain the fountain as a metaphor for God's love for us, and he seemed satisfied with the explanation. Though I'm sure we'll have a recap next time I try to sing that song! I just love the conversations we have at this age!

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

As many of you have noticed, Eli looks more and more like Ryan as he grows up. This little boy loves his Dada, and loves to do things with him, from reading the paper to watching football to doing yard work. One morning I walked into the living room to find this adorable sight...

A few days later Eli got a long-overdue haircut, and boy does he look like Dada now! Anytime he loses his curls, you can really see the resemblance (especially those of you who knew Ryan at this age!).

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Eli spends most of his time playing hard and working hard (his words)! A week or so ago he was working hard helping Dada reassemble our coffee table. As you can see, he took his job very seriously, with all of the appropriate equipment. I think a lot of us will be surprised if this boy doesn't go into construction when he grows up! :)

Friday, November 21, 2008

The high school cross-country team that Ryan coaches once again went to the state finals, and they won! The team and coaches spend the weekend in Pasco, WA, and Eli and usually go along. Eli's favorite parts of the trip were playing with the little boy in the mirror in our room and chasing the birds after the meet! Cograts girls (and awesome coaches)! By the way, Ryan's the guy you can hardly see, fourth from the right. :)

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Eli had another great Halloween. As you've read, he was really excited about his Thomas costume! We enjoyed spending the evening with our friends Brooke and Jeff and their kiddos. They invited us over for a yummy dinner and then trick-or-treating in their very kid-friendly neighborhood. Eli and Grace had a great time together, and collected a lot of goodies! Grace was great at saying "trick-or-treat" and "thank you" at each house...Eli, not so much. :) He was too shy to say trick-or-treat, and then was so amazed by all the candy that as much as we prompted him to say thank you, all he could manage (at every single house) was, "there's a lot of treats in your bucket!" (Yes, he still says "you" when he means "me"). :) Eli also had his first candy that night. Not his first sugar, by any means, and yes, he's had sprinkles on cookies, etc. But this was his first real "candy." After trick-or-treating we all hung out for awhile at Brooke and Jeff's house. Eli was happily playing with Grace's toys when she went and got his treat bucket for him, pulled out a little pack of M&Ms and said, "here Eli!" Suddenly Eli realized there was more to this trick-or-treating thing than just obtaining the treats. :) He thoroughly enjoyed the half-dozen M&Ms that I gave him, and fortunatley completely forgot about the treats after that! :)

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

No, of course I'm not talking about the baby, I've got awhile to wait on that! I'm talking about this shamefully late blog post! Okay, here's the real post title:

Pumpkin Carving

Pumpkin carving was quite an event in our house this year...well, actually it was a series of events. After choosing his special pumpkins at the pumpkin patch, Eli was not about to carve faces into either of them! So we went to Fred Meyer and picked out another pumpkin specifically for carving (or "giving it a face" as Eli said). We brought it home, laid out some newspaper, and got to work. Eli chose the face we'd use from a jack-o-lantern collage we made earlier in the week, and loved being so involved in the process. However, once we opened up the pumpkin and starting pulling out the gushy stuff, Eli was done being involved! :) He had no interest in touching the weird stuff or the seeds, no matter how cool we said it was. He did want to hold the little pieces of pumpkin once we started cutting out they eyes, etc. Afterward, Ryan roasted the pumpkin seeds, and they were so good that we decided we should do the whole thing again (okay, that and the fact that we had hoped for a more sensory experience for Eli). :) So, off we went to Fred Meyer to buy yet another pumpkin! Again, Eli chose the face and we went to work. This time, however, he was really into the whole experience. He wanted to pick seeds from the gushy middle, play with the seeds, and touch everything. He really had a lot of fun with this one. Sadly, the pumpkin seeds weren't quite as yummy, but it was well worth it for the fun Eli had.

Eli's cameos on Emily's blog

Hello trouble!

Okay, so in reality the t-shirt isn't very appropriate for our mellow-mannered Eli, but it's still cute! Eli had a great time hanging out at Dada's track meet the other day. He likes to watch the "grirls runnin" (and no, those aren't typos!).

Favorite Photo

This picture was taken by the father of one of Ryan's basketball players back in December. Needless to say, it is currently my favorite photo! Way to melt a mommy's heart!

Ta Da!

This little boy loves his Dada, and wants to be just like him...right down to the clothes. He often chooses his clothes based on which are most like Dada's, and this day just decided to stick with Dada's own clothes!

Neigh Neigh

Eli gave all new meaning to the term "bareback riding" after his bath last night. He thought it was pretty hilarious!

Eli the tool man

Our friends down the street gave Eli this great Bob the Builder tool belt and construction hat set for Christmas. Needless to say, it's a new favorite! You rarely see him without pliers in his hand these days. :)

Christmas joy!

Eli had a great Christmas...and that smile sure made our day!

Can I color this?

Two of Eli's favorite activities: coloring and unzipping pajamas. On this particular morning while coloring and unzipping his pajamas, he became quite interested in his belly button.

I thought we cut that hair!

The above caption is actually what Ryan said when he walked in and saw our little mohawk man. Needless to say, bathtime is one of Eli's favorite times!

Whoa! Where did my hair go?

Yay, dough!

Who needs Play-Doh when you can have real pizza dough? Eli wasn't sure about the strange stuff he was given to play with during our dinner at Frankie's restaurant at first, but after awhile he got into it! Oh, and look at those long, curly locks!!

Perfect Fall Photo

I have a question!

While Eli was "reading" his book about fossils, he suddenly looked up and raised his hand, just like a student with a question! What a cutie!

Hay Ride

Our visit to Jubilee Farm included a wagon ride to their pumpkin patch. Eli's favorite part? The tractor pulling the wagon, of course!

Family fun in Moclips

We all love the beach! The four of us (you can barely see Zoe at the bottom of the pic) spent three days on the WA coast to celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary. It was a perfect getaway!

A boy and his bike...

Our neighbor, whose son is about to turn 4, passed on a great little trike to Eli. He absolutely loves his new wheels!

Blackberry Boy

Eli's favorite summertime snack!

Dada!

Every time Eli sees a lawn mower, he says "Dada!" This one actually belongs to our neighbors. :)